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Saturday, February 22, 2020

Are you feeling thankful? If so, that makes two of us, and probably a lot more just keeping it to themselves. Sharing a bit of good in this world sometimes is all that is needed to brighten the days of others or bring momentary smiles to their faces.I am linking this post to the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop hosted by Kristi of Thankful Me.

1. An aha moment

Read my Six Sentence Story post for this week for what the aha moment was.

2. Discovering descendants I didn’t know and learning that the name of one descendant was called by his family by a name other than his own given name or what would have been considered the usual nickname of his given name

I knew a couple (now deceased) had a child (also now deceased) because of some notes I’d taken years ago when talking to relatives to learn more about the extended family. The name of the child supposedly was Pete, but nothing in existing records showed they had a child by that name. The only child we could find was a child by the name of Ross and his middle name wasn’t Pete. It wasn’t until I reflected on some names closer to home that I realized that something similar had taken place in this family.

3. Washing machines

I am thankful that wringer washing machines are a thing of the past, especially since our washer has been kept very busy today.

4. The call from an accountant saying the return was finished

5. Lots of helping hands to set up chairs, tables and decorations for a dinner at church

6. A speed-friendshipping activity for the women’s group at church

In this mobile society in which we live, families move into areas and perhaps a few years later are transferred or move for other reasons. The organizations to which they belong fluctuate with the changing memberships.A quick and fun way to learn about one another is through having a speed-friendshipping activity. Sometimes even the old timers learn something new about someone they have known for years, because life never stays still.

7. A good report on my field of vision test

Six months ago my ophthalmologist told me to come back in six months for another field of vision test. Normally I only go see him once a year. Although I hadn’t noticed any changes during the past six months, I wasn’t sure what the test would show.

8. A last minute invitation to a concert this afternoon

Although we were not able to accept, it was nice to have been considered.

9. Crocuses in bloom

I was glad to see some of them blooming even though it was just for a day. Apparently they are fodder for the deer this year. Here today, gone tomorrow, or sooner.

While being caught up in family history this week, and thinking at times about that prompt Denise from Girlie on the Edge's Blog gave those who enjoy writing short stories, I had an aha moment. I thought for several days I might be able to pull together a land claim story, but it seemed to require more than six sentences, much, much more. That may have to require another writing adventure at some point. I'm attaching this post to Six Sentence Stories - Claim.

Hey, have you seen Joe around?

No, I think he went out to the pasture to get Grandma, and I expect Bud wasn’t far behind. Those two are quite the pair, and it won’t be too much longer before Bud will be able to help milk Grandma* when Joe’s over at the baseball field.

When I see him, I’m going to try to talk some sense into him. His teacher claims he was daydreaming and didn’t even respond when she shouted his name today.

Well I suspect calling our boys by names that don’t have any resemblance of their given names of Vic and Charles might have had some impact on his lack of attention, that and his wishing he could be fishing instead of sitting in a classroom.

Saturday, February 15, 2020

Is it possible to express gratitude in some way each and every day, even when there are disastrous things happening throughout the world and challenging things occurring to those you know and love? Some would say, Absolutely not! Others might say, Why should I at a time like this? The Ten Things of Thankful blog hop is a place to at least give it a try once a week and see what a difference it makes in your life over time. Kristi of Thankful Me is the host. Click the link of Ten Things of Thankful to read the expectations of participants in this blog hop, and then join in.

1. Realizing that the book I pulled off my shelf to read for no reason, one I perhaps hadn’t read in its entirety ever, turns out to be exactly what I needed to read

When I received a text asking if I could sub in a Sunday School class this Sunday, I realized after reading the lesson that the book I’d started reading the day before was exactly what I needed for my added understanding of the subject. I don’t think this was an accident.

2. Caring people and those who step up to bat when there is a need even when it may not be convenient

3. Being able to quickly realize why I experienced sudden pain at the corner of my eye and vowing not to ever allow that to happen again

I’d applied some over-the-counter pain medication on the back of my neck. The directions said to wash one’s hand after applying the medication, so I did. We had a guest soon afterwards, and as we were talking, I rubbed the back of my neck to relieve some discomfort,and then I rubbed the corner of my eye. As soon as I did that, I felt intense hot pain in that area of my eye. It took me a minute or so to realize that I should not have rubbed my neck where the medicine was and then touched the area of my eye! After googling, I found out that 15 minutes of flushing my eye with warm water would give me the relief I was wanting. Word of warning: medicine which has a component of chili peppers in it should NOT EVER touch the eyes AND read the warnings on the box first.

4. Seeing benefits of working Sudoku puzzles

After finishing working on some tax preparation papers, I told my husband that some of what I’d been doing reminded me of working Sudoku puzzles such making sure the numbers were in the right little boxes.

5. Classical music playing in the background while studying or doing anything that requires high concentration

6. Some sunshine poking through the clouds and rain that was falling most of the week

The solar panels have missed you.

7. NWS and TripCheck so those traveling know when it is best to return home sooner rather than later and not get caught in the impending snowstorm in the mountains

9. The moments in time that we remember because of what we learned either in that instant, or in retrospect

10. Being able to finish what I start, and continuing to work toward completion of those things that are not finished, but recognizing that some things need to be put on the back burner at times to address more important things that arise

Saturday, February 8, 2020

With this quotation I carry on with my weekly post of ten things for which I am thankful. I am linking up to the blog hop Ten Things of Thankful hosted by Kristi of Thankful Me. If you want to join in with this weekly practice, click here and read the short list of rules. The benefits of adding this practice to one's life are immeasurable!

1. It was great to have a nice-sized group attending the Empty Nester’s lunch at our favorite buffet gathering place this week.

2. After debating on whether to get the audio version of the next book club book, whether to get the Kindle version or possibly pick up a used copy somewhere, I opted for the audio, especially after finding out there was a great President’s Day offer for the Audible subscription.

(The last Audible book I got was a free trial and I was debating on whether to go ahead and subscribe.)

3. When I wasn’t able to find the desired book at any of the used book stores or thrifts stores, I wasn’t about to go home empty handed, especially when I spotted a skirt and top at a great price. Great unexpected find!

4. This week has been a bit of a learning curve for me as I have tried to learn the ropes again on familysearch.org. When one steps away from anything internet related for a bit, it doesn’t take long to see that a lot has changed in the interim. Thanks to a friend who spent some time on the phone with me and walked me through a few things, I was able to feel more comfortable with the changes. There is still a lot more to learn, but at least I know where to find more of the help I will need on the site. I spent some time practicing too, and that of course boosted my confidence.

5. Just as someone had helped me this week with some questions I had, I also had an opportunity to help someone else the following day.

6. One of our TToT bloggers recently shared a link to a YouTube video thatgot me moving. . .literally! After watching the one she shared, I found another one which is similar to one an exercise group I know is following. I am working up to the point where I will start working out with the group in the near future. Since I am trying to take things a little slower at this point, I just wanted to exercise at home for the time being.

7. A neighbor brought some gravel over to spread on the muddy lane we were having to travel on to get to our driveway. What a nice, unexpected surprise! We didn’t even realize what he had done, until someone called us that night to ask if we had put the gravel on the lane. (Having a home built into a hillside provides a nice sound barrier, so we didn’t hear him working.)

8. We have an older pickup truck that isn’t driven as much as our car. It was behind on some needed repairs. Being able to get it scheduled quickly and having needed parts arrive the following day was greatly appreciated.

9. I have been wanting to see the new Little Women movie and this was the night. Yeah for a movie night with my husband . . .

10. And dinner out afterwards and plenty to bring home for tomorrow! Sometimes we celebrate Valentine’s Day early.❤️

Saturday, February 1, 2020

When it comes to items of gratitude, I suppose there are as many different ways of determining what they are as there are people considering the matter. How one views the world and those in it certainly has some impact. The interplay between the then and now pertaining to our experiences can bring to light things that may still be too abstract to put into words, let alone to see what there is to be thankful about, but that is okay. With time it will become apparent and then you will be able to think it, write it, and/or share it.

Kristi of Thankful Me hosts this weekly Ten Things of Thankful blog hop where I link my post each week. I am thankful for her encouragement to participate as often as possible.

1. We have had some heavy rain storms this week which have caused boulders and hillsides to dislodge and roll on to highways. What a scary thing for a driver to experience! Fortunately those in the vehicle survived.

2. Closer to home there was some mud that begin to flow on a nearby hill when springs erupted from underground. Thankfully, a neighbor had access to equipment to clean up the mess on our lane the best he could and to put bales of straw on the hillside to help curb the mud flow should February bring more heavy rain.

Mud flow

3. It was nice to be able to get to the bottom of our land line phone problem thanks to the repairman who came the next day after I called to report the problem. I wish I had called a little sooner, but I thought perhaps the problem was due to our old cordless phone, plus the problem we were experiencing was intermittent. We had also considered the problem was due to the phone company itself. The issue had to do with one of the two wires in the outside underground line. I guess after 40 years wires sometimes need to be replaced, and at no cost to us. Yeah! One wire still works, but a work order has been placed to replace both wires.

4. In January I accepted an invitation to participate in a book club. I have done this before, but not recently. This week we discussed Dear Mrs. Bird. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the book, usually done as I walked on the treadmill. I think I was the only one at the Book Club meeting who was actually born during WW II, the setting when the story took place. The discussion brought up many points to consider. It was an enjoyable evening.

5. Having plenty of time to read the book for the next book club meeting is just what I need, and within a couple of days, we knew the title of our next read!

6. Expandable file folders are just the ticket for what to do with all those papers we need to keep track of as we prepare our tax returns. I am thankful for them. Sometimes I am able to find used ones at thrift stores, but this year I didn't spend much time looking and just bought some new ones. Next year I should have an assortment of my own that I will be recycling here at home for future use. (That project was one that didn't get done this past year.)

7. Picking up a pizza is a simple quick meal, but this week I was thinking about the little pizzas I used to make by using English muffins, pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, ham slices, and pineapple slices, and before you know we had little pizzas ready to eat.

8. I am always thankful for a night of restful sleep.

9. Today I learned that there is a Facebook page that is just for those who are descendants of some of my ancestors. What a fun discovery! And speaking of ancestors and their descendants, a couple of months back I learned that the daughter of one of my second cousins was starting a blog. Is blogging in our DNA? 😀

10. I am thankful that we live so close to a national wildlife refuge where my husband can go take great photos of birds and occasionally a mammal or two. This is something that brings him a lot of joy.

Sometimes I feel like we live in a wildlife refuge for as many times as they take refuge here and for all the times I try to capture a photo while they look for something to eat.